First Ilocos Norte triathlon race set March 30

The Province of Ilocos Norte will host the first ‘Olympic distance’ triathlon event dubbed as ‘Tri Ilocos Norte’ on March 30, Black Saturday.

It was announced by Provincial Tourism Officer Ianree Raquel, saying that it will boost the tourism industry of the province as the race will draw more than 200 participants from all over the country.

“We’ll build up a new character of the province in terms of sports and introduce it to the rest of the country and the world as an ideal venue for all these popular emerging sports now, including triathlon,” Raquel said.

A triathlon is a multiple-stage competition involving the completion of three continuous and sequential endurance disciplines.

The age groups will range from 17-24, 25-29, 30-34, 35-39, to 40 and above for both male and female groups, and 17-above for the mixed relay.

The first stage is swimming at the beach front of Playa Tropical Resort in Currimao. The second leg is the biking route which stretches through Currimao, Paoay and Laoag City via the Currimao-Paoay-Suba-Balacao Road. The third stage will be the run route course starting at Plaza del Norte , Laoag City via the Paoay Golf Course.

“Ilocos Norte has the best roads in the country, the nicest landscapes, and beautiful coasts—we’ll definitely provide a very good backdrop for this triathlon event,” Raquel said.

Ilocos Norte has been eyed as an ideal sports venue by various sports group, most recent being the first Paoay International Regatta held at Paoay Lake last Jan. 15 to 20 which was attended by various international rowing clubs.

“We’re hoping that with the launch of the first triathlon event here in Ilocos Norte, after a year or two, we’ll get the chance to host the next Ironman which is the biggest triathlon event in the country,” Raquel said, pertaining to the Ironman 70.3 triathlon event which is now being hosted by Cebu.

The registration for the triathlon started last Jan. 25 and will end on March 15.—Grazielle Mae A. Sales, PGIN-CMO

Ilocos Sentinel Newspaper is published weekly in Laoag City, Ilocos Norte since Year 2006. It is widely circulated in Ilocos Region, Cagayan Valley, CAR and the entire Philippines. The clan Guiangs behind this paper are the proud direct descendants of DON MARTIN GUIANG, founder of the town of Paoay, Ilocos Norte and first chief executive of Paoay town (1701-1704).

About Ilocos Sentinel

Ilocos Sentinel is a community-based weekly newspaper established on June 19, 2006 in Laoag City, Ilocos Norte, located nearly 500 kilometers away north of Manila, the capital of the Philippines.

This weekly newspaper is of general circulation in Laoag City, Batac City, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, La Union, Abra, Pangasinan, Apayao, Cagayan Valley and many parts of the Philippines.